We'll be publishing the results of the reader poll later today, but here's a midseason staff debate featuring Danielle Bernstein, John Jiloty, Zach Babo, Geoff Shannon and Terry Foy.

Who do you want in net for your team: Pierce Bassett or John Galloway (or other)?

Zach Babo: This is a tough one. With the way he has looked so far this year, it is hard not to pick Pierce Bassett. He has played out of his mind at stretches, including a 16-save performance (76%) against Galloway's team. BUT, Galloway wins ball games and is a leader on the best team in the country. You can say that is because of the rest of his team more than him, but at the end of the day, he wins ball games, and that to me is the most important stat for a goalie.

Danielle Bernstein: I want Pierce Bassett. As many of JHU’s sophomores have, Bassett has made a huge jump from last season to this season. At times he’s electrifying and takes the defense on his shoulders. He makes the saves he should and steals a few others and he’s consistent, which in a year where defense and lower scoring games has been increasingly common, is very important.

John Jiloty: Galloway. From a leadership perspective, with all that he’s accomplished and been through in his career at SU (NCAA’s all-time wins leader), he’s the guy I’d want in my cage for the rest of this college season. His numbers so far haven’t been as impressive as might have been expected from the reigning first-team All-American goalie. But the results, again, speak for themselves. This guy flat-out wins games. And I expect him to get stronger as the season continues.

Geoff Shannon: Galloway. Don’t even see this as a choice. You pick the guy with two championship rings. He’s been to the big show, and knows how to lock it down when it counts. Bassett is a fine talent, and hopefully he’ll get his chance, but you have to go with the veteran Upstater at this point.

Terry Foy: Galloway. Because I want to win a national championship, and no one else currently playing has been in two of them.

Most intriguing conference thus far?

Zach Babo: The Colonial might be the most dramatic and hardest to pick right now. The America East has become compelling with Stony Brook seeing their window to the playoffs shrinking, and the ACC seems to just keep swapping wins around. I am going to say the Big East though, because when this conference was first envisioned, it seemed like it would be Syracuse's to lose. But right now, I am really not sure who would win between Notre Dame and Syracuse, and Villanova has a great chance to steal the whole thing out from everyone as well.

Danielle Bernstein: Easily the Ivy League. It’s literally any team’s game on any given week. Of the nine conference matchups so far this season, there have been nine overtime periods. Once again the way the Ivy League plays out heading into the conference tournament could come down to the final weekend of the regular season and what’s more exciting or intriguing than that?!

John Jiloty: Colonial. Three teams (No. 7 Hofstra, No. 16 Delaware, No. 18 UMass) are in the Top 20 this week. Penn State, Drexel and Towson have been in there at some point as well. That’s six teams that legitimately could win this conference. Who would have thought coming into the season that through April 7, Delaware and Penn State would be leading the CAA? Last year Hofstra made the NCAA Tournament without making the CAA Tournament. Could we see that happen again, with a CAA team missing the conference tournament but making NCAAs?

Geoff Shannon: Ivy League. The Colonial is intriguing in its ineptness. Meanwhile, almost every team in the Ivy (even, recently, Princeton) has been playing inspired ball. Cornell is the familiar Big Red Juggernaut, but Yale and Penn are on their heels. The Ivy League tourney should be the best of the conference title weekends this year.

Terry Foy: Not surprisingly, I have to go with the CAA. The standings are essentially flipped from what the consensus dictated heading into the season — Delaware’s commanding position at 3-0 with a win over Hofstra and Penn State’s 2-0 (although not as commanding), Umass and Drexel’s struggles have been surprising. Plus, remember that Towson was in a similar position at this time last year and ended up hosting the conference title game, so history tells us to expect some fireworks from the league in April.

Who’s your breakthrough player this year?

Zach Babo: Brian Karalunas of Villanova has exploded this year. I know people knew about him last year and talked a little about him too, but for the past two or three seasons, the conversation about LSM has been pretty clearly Joel White and then everyone else. In 2011, it's not just that Karalunas' name is up their with White's, it's that the Wildcat has surpassed White in many discussions, and a lot of people, including this guy, would make the argument that Karalunas is definitively the best LSM in the nation.

Danielle Bernstein: Despite Georgetown sitting outside the top 20 of the Nike/IL Media Poll at the moment, I’m going to go with Davey Emala. For a team that entered the season wondering who was going to score goals, I think Emala has stepped in and exceeded expectations. He’s the team’s leader in goals and points after a freshman year in which he finished with seven points. And if you need further examples, watch the Georgetown-Syracuse game at this year’s Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic. He took that offense on his shoulders and was a huge reason the Hoyas were an overtime goal away from pulling one of the year’s biggest upsets.

John Jiloty: Brian Karalunas. He was obviously good last year, and enough people noticed him, since he was the Big East co-Defensive Player of the Year (with Georgetown’s Chris Nixon, ahead of Joel White). But while White was a first-team All-American, Karalunas was just honorable mention. Now he’s being mentioned as a potential Tewaaraton Trophy Finalist, and a legitimate candidate for USILA Middie of the Year honors. That’s a big step. Karalunas’ mid-2011 hype is fueled not just by his performance so far (an NCAA-leading 46 caused turnovers to go with 41 groundballs) but by Villanova’s surprising No. 11 ranking.

Geoff Shannon: Davey Emala. I remember folks questioning whether he should have been on the Under Armour All-American team a couple years ago. Now, he’s Georgetown’s leading scorer (26G as of presstime), carrying the offensive mantle for the Hoyas. Works the middle of the offense with his 5-10, 200-pound tank-like frame.

Terry Foy: It’s crazy how many players can be good answers to this question considering how many well known and respected players returned. Still, Villanova’s Kevin Cunningham, Yale’s Brian Douglass, Penn State’s Austin Kaut and Duke’s Jordan Wolfe — not many outside of close fans of those respective teams expected the type of year these guys are having. That said, I have to give a nod to Maryland’s Curtis Holmes and Hopkins’ Matt Dolente — regardless of how well known they were (Dolente’s certainly taken a lot of draws in four years), how they’ve emerged for their teams at the face-off X has been remarkable.

Buying or selling: It’s Rob Pannell’s Tewaaraton Trophy to lose.

Zach Babo: I am buying, but with the pretty big caveat that Cornell has to make it at least to the quarterfinals, and if they lose there, do it close. If the Big Red get bounced early and Pannell has a quiet game, it's going to hurt his shot big time. Much like the oft-compared Heisman Trophy, the Tewaaraton is inherently flawed because 1) whether openly admitted or not, postseason play is a factor in the voting, and 2) it always goes to an offensive player. Since it was started, the Tewaaraton has gone to six attackmen and four middies, all with prominent offensive skills (though many of the middies were two-way players, they were also scorers). So as long as the Big Red make a push in the playoffs, and Pannell continues to put up gaudy offensive numbers and lead the nation in points, it's all his. Of course, the award should go to whomever wins the John Lade vs. Rob Pannell battle when Syracuse and Cornell play on April 12. Lade has made some of the best offensive players in the country disappear during games, but since he doesn't score an occasional transition goal, and he isn't flashy, he has NO shot at winning.

Danielle Bernstein: Selling — When you look at the updated Tewaaraton lists and see names like Joel White and Steele Stanwick, I don’t think it’s anyone’s to lose. I know people are always quick to write off Cornell to be one of the two teams playing on Memorial Day and that they constantly find a way to win in the tournament (I read the March issue) but at the same time, the road to the Tewaaraton runs through Championship Weekend and I’m not giving it to anyone yet.

John Jiloty: Buying. He is the best player in the country right now. He’s also the MVP for his team, maybe moreso than any other player in the NCAA. What I mean by that is he’s more valuable to Cornell than any other player is to his team. He’s getting his teammates involved and making Cornell a lot better than it would be without him leading the attack. The Tewaaraton is not an MVP award, but he’s got the whole package in terms of talent, results and importance to his team.

Geoff Shannon: Buying. At least at this point. Once again, Cornell was somewhat underestimated in preseason. Once again, they’re showing why they’re a perennial final four team. A trip to Baltimore, along with a couple marquee performances between then and now, should help him solidify the No. 1 spot for the Tewaaraton.

Terry Foy: True. I don’t recall this much public support for a single player for this award at this point in the year since Mike Powell’s senior season (part of that is due to Danowski and Rabil battling it out in ‘08). His play has been remarkable and eye-catching to the degree that he’ll give the “best player on a team playing on Memorial Day” stereotype a real test if the Big Red don’t advance that far in the tournament